This invention relates to a procedure and device for the automated, batch-wise preparation of foodstuffs such as French fries out of potato sticks preliminarily deep-fried in oil or the like by baking in a furnace cell without renewed deep-frying in oil.
A device of this type is known from WO 89/12417, for example. In this publication, the lower sealing element of the furnace cell is comprised of a pot or pan-like element with an inclined floor, which receives the foodstuffs during heating, which is rotated around an inclined axis while heating, and is tilted downward as a whole around a horizontal axis for emptying. Heating elements along with a fan for circulating the air inside the furnace cell are provided in its upper part inside the furnace cell. Another fan in a casing wall brings about a vacuum in the casing, but no venting of the furnace cell is provided during the baking process. A type of slider seals the furnace cell from above. Situated over the slider is an insertion hole accessible from outside for standardized portion shells sealed with a film for the foodstuffs to be prepared. The insertion hole has a cutting device for automatically opening the portion shell inserted downward into it with the film. The slider abutting the furnace cell from above is opened during the automatic opening of the portion shells. The known device is designed as a tabletop model.
The object of the invention in particular is to provide a device of the aforementioned type that ensures an optimal baking process depending on the composition of the French Fries, and hence leads to an improved result of the end product.
This object is achieved according to claim 1 by virtue of the fact that the furnace cell is surrounded by a casing that is provided with a barcode reader, and connected with a controller, and that the latter allows or disallows activation of the device as a function of the information contained in the respectively read barcode, and/or regulates the baking time and/or baking temperature and/or a preheating temperature.
Advantageous, and hence preferred, embodiments of the device according to the invention are described in the dependent claims.
The device according to the invention can be used to special advantage in particular where conventional, oil-operated deep fryers cannot be installed due to the smells they produce, or where installing conventional deep fryers is not worth it due to the outlay, e.g., of exhaust devices or the like. In addition, the device according to the invention requires no oil, which must otherwise be supplied, changed at regular intervals and disposed at ever-increasing costs. Therefore, the device according to the invention can also be used where French Fries or the like only have to be made occasionally. Finally, the device according to the invention, in particular the tabletop version, requires no permanent installation, and can simply be operated using an electrical outlet given a suitable design.
Claim 6 also relates to a procedure for the automated, portion-by-portion preparation of such foodstuffs.